Family spokesman Marty Appel said Monday night that Merlyn Mantle died from the effects of Alzheimer's disease. She had not appeared in public since last August, at a private dinner before a memorial for former Yankees star Bobby Murcer.

RIVALRY RATINGS SPIKE -- Ch. 9, YES, Fox and ESPN averaged 9.7, 9.6, 8.5 and 10.3 percent of New York-area homes from Thursday through Sunday, all big figures in the nation's largest market. YES averaged 984,000 viewers for Friday night's 15-inning struggle, the second-largest figure in the network's eight-year history behind an April 3, 2005 Yankees-Red Sox game (1.2 million). Between 11:45 and midnight, Friday's game was watched in 26 percent of area homes with a TV in use.